The government on Wednesday approved the Personal Data Protection Bill that will spell out a framework for the handling of personal data including its processing by public and private entities.

The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said the Bill will be introduced in Parliament during the current Winter Session.

The Bill is likely to contain broad guidelines on the collection, storage, and processing of personal data, consent of individuals, penalties and compensation, code of conduct and an enforcement model.

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Last week, IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the government will soon introduce a robust and balanced Personal Data Protection Bill in Parliament, adding that India will never compromise on data sovereignty.

A month back, amid the furore over Pegasus hacking incident, the IT minister tried to send out a strong message saying India takes privacy seriously of which informational privacy is an integral part, and data imperialism will not be acceptable.

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The comments were made in the backdrop of recent disclosures by messaging giant WhatsApp that said Indian journalists and human rights activists were among those globally spied upon by unnamed entities using an Israeli spyware Pegasus.

WhatsApp had said it is suing NSO Group, an Israeli surveillance firm that is reportedly behind the technology that helped unnamed entities' hack into phones of roughly 1,400 users spanning four continents and included diplomats, political dissidents, journalists, and senior government officials.

(With inputs from PTI)

First Published:Dec 4, 2019 2:11 PM IST